Chapter 23
Wesley walked in the hospital, leaving the car parked just outside. The lot was pretty much deserted, and he parked slightly back, on the off chance that someone might pull in and need to rush in. That way, his car would be out of the way, but not so far Gram couldn’t make it there.
He couldn’t get back through the glass doors without a badge, so he stood at the edge of the waiting room. There was no door on it; it was just a large open area where chairs had been set up and a TV played in both corners. Someone had turned the TV up since the last time he had walked through, although he wasn’t sure which of the four people who were still sitting there might have been the culprit. They all had their eyes glued on them, three on the one in the far corner, and one on the opposite set.
They must have been playing different things, but Wesley didn’t pay much attention. He was more interested in getting to Birdie, and he considered asking the receptionist to let him back.
But since he expected her back anytime, and since the little room was already really crowded, he didn’t.
It turned out that he only waited about ten minutes before he saw them coming down the hall.
He went and stood by the glass doors that opened automatically as they stepped near.
“I wondered where you went. ”
“I couldn’t get back in without a badge, and I expected you guys would be done soon. I have the car right here out front,” he said.
Gram was in a wheelchair with her foot cast and her face no longer pinched in pain.
“We had to sign our life away, but beyond that, we should be good.”
“Perfect.” They turned to go.
For the first time that evening, they saw someone else coming in, and so they moved over, giving them plenty of room to pass.
In the short amount of time that they stood there, there was a commercial playing on TV, and for some reason, it caught his attention.
Looking over, he saw a clean-shaven guy, running a finger over his face and holding up a razor, talking about what a great razor it was.
There weren’t a whole lot of times in his life where he wanted to sink through the floor, but that was one of them.
The dude on the screen was him.
He could see the fine print at the bottom of the screen that said Wesley Moffat. Actual player for the Icebreaker hockey team.
Hopefully it was too small for anyone else to read, and the only reason he could read it was because he knew what it said.
But he heard a little gasp beside him, and he turned his head slowly, first looking at Gram who watched the people coming in. Someone was bleeding, and they were holding their right arm, while someone else held a bloodied bandage to their head.
As his eyes continued to move, and his head followed them, Birdie came into view. Her eyes were glued on the screen.
“All right then, let’s go, before someone else comes in here and starts bleeding all over the place,” he said mostly just to say something, not because he was all of a sudden in a big rush to get out. Even though Gram was surely ready to go home.
When was Birdie going to say something? Had she seen his name? Had she recognized him? Or had she just thought the guy was familiar?
A full beard was always uncomfortable for him, although many of his teammates grew them in the winter. But he often had scruff on his face. A few days’ worth of growth on his face. And he’d made sure it stayed there since he’d come to Raspberry Ridge, hoping not to be recognized.
Would she be able to recognize him despite that ?
The commercial was more than a year and a half old, and he matured some since then, although he figured he probably looked the same. Or almost. Just a year and half’s worth of age on his face, but at his age, it didn’t make a big difference.
Either she did or she didn’t. He couldn’t do anything about it now and wasn’t going to talk to her about it in front of Gram.
“The front seat has more legroom. Do you think we’d better put her there?” he asked as Birdie walked silently beside him as they stepped out into the cool night and turned right to go to their car.
“That’s a good idea,” she said as she walked ahead, opening the front door.
“I think I can get myself on my feet, I just might need someone to help me down.”
“How about you hold on to my forearms, and Birdie will make sure you don’t hit your head on the car.”
“That sounds easy enough,” Gram said.
“Whatever those meds are, we need to get a lifetime subscription. They make her agreeable.”
“Oh, you hush.” Gram gave him a light slap on the forearm before she grabbed it.
He laughed, figuring that she didn’t mind his teasing at all. She probably appreciated laughing.
Birdie was strangely quiet. It was only a matter of time until Gram noticed.
Maybe she was trying to figure out what the lines had said, or maybe she was trying to figure out what she knew about him. He’d been in the news. Although, someone who didn’t follow sports might not have heard anything.
“All right, I’ll take the wheelchair back,” he said as they got her gram in, and he pushed the door closed.
She didn’t say anything but opened the door and got in the back.
He wasn’t going to worry about it. He reminded himself of that as he was walking around the car. He didn’t think it would make a difference. She knew him. She’d been around him. She saw him. Shouldn’t make a difference. He wouldn’t have chosen for her to find out that way, but he couldn’t undo it.
Still, the car was quiet as he maneuvered through the hospital parking lot and got out on the highway.
“Birdie, hand me my purse, please. I want to check and make sure that I put my phone in it. I think I did. ”
“Sure, Gram,” Birdie said, scooting over a little and holding her purse out.
Gram took it, and Birdie continued to sit in the back. He was tempted to look in the rearview mirror, where he could see her easily now, but he didn’t.
As he made the turn to get out on the interstate, he happened to look up at a billboard.
It was to the left, on the other side of the road. It was huge, and it showed full-body shots of a singer in skintight leggings and a dress that hit right above her knees. She had a microphone in her hand, and her mouth was open, like she was in the middle of singing a song.
Polly , the billboard read, new album out this fall. Preorder now!
He stared at the billboard, something making his eyes unable to turn away, and then, as clear as a bell, he knew exactly what it was.
Pollock was Birdie’s last name. Polly was her gram’s name. She had gotten her stage name either from her gram or from her last name. Birdie Pollock was Polly, pop superstar and international sensation. Quite possibly the most famous person on the planet.